Stitches in Time
by sweetkiwi604
Summary: Teagan was daddy's little girl until he was pulled into the shadows of his own mind. Luckily, she had a certain Irishman there to pick up the pieces. One shot. Complete.


**Author's Note: I don't own anything to do with the Boondock Saints only Niall, Siobhan, and Teagan belong to me.**

**Inspired by the song Let Go by Tyrone Wells.**

**Many thanks to Riain for being my beta for this one shot! **

Stitches in Time

_Hide nothing, for time, which sees and hears all, exposes all_. - Sophocles

Time, by definition, is a non-spatial continuum that is measured in terms of events, which succeed one another from past through present to future. It doesn't like to be defined though. It is a fluid motion- never stopping for trivial things like appointments and baseball games. Time doesn't care if you've hadn't enough of it or how you have spent it. It is concrete in that it is never ending; disasters or even triumphs can't stop it even if we would like it to.

So then how do you measure a life? Is it by the amount of time you've spent living, a simple tally of years, or is it measured by the moments that warm your heart? We all have them no matter how inconsequential. What happens though when your time is running out and all you're left with are memories? Would that be enough or would you try to bargain for more time?

Teagan Rafferty was no stranger to Father Time, in fact she pleaded with him on many occasions to give her more time with her own father. The love between a father and daughter was indescribable, and Teagan and Niall's relationship was no different. She had been daddy's little girl for as long as she could remember. He had taught her how to tie her shoes, how to ride a bike, and how to clean out the cuts after she had fallen. He had been there to wipe her tears and share her smiles, he had taken pictures at school plays, and taught her the proper way to hit a baseball. Then, as she got older, he interrogated boyfriends and begrudgingly handed over the keys to the car. It had been the two of them against the world until time started to pull Niall away from her.

It seemed that overnight the one person you counted on for everything became the person who solely depended on you. It started with little things at first; forgetting where he left his glasses or to lock the front door when he left the apartment. Teagan would playfully tease him that it was old age tinkering with his mind but she had unfortunately been wrong. The forgetfulness continued to get worse to the point where he left the stove on and started a fire in their apartment one Tuesday.

She didn't want to believe or accept the fact that she was losing her father to an incurable disease. She had read the pamphlets the doctor had given her over and over, looking for answers she would never find. They talked about things like dark matter, brain functions, and coping mechanisms but it all seemed foreign. Teagan scribbled down a few notes on the back the pamphlet and glanced over to her father who was getting angry with the doctor.

Niall argued that he couldn't possibly have Alzheimer's disease because that was something old men got diagnosed with. When the doctor tried to explain to him that the first symptoms usually appear in the early sixties, Niall slammed his fist down on the desk outraged because he was a mere fifty five. He didn't care about the statistics- that over five million people in America alone had been diagnosed, and Teagan didn't either for that matter. This was her hero, her rock, and she only wanted to hear how to keep him that way, not how long it would be until she was left alone in this world.

It was almost like time was being run by a spoilt sadistic child, intent on making people miserable and after a year's time Niall had slipped further into the shadows of his mind. Teagan held out as long as she could, but eventually gave in and hired a nurse to come stay with him while she was at work. She came home on a Friday night to see the apartment dark. Worry filled her as she turned the lights on and was about to start checking the different rooms until her eyes landed on a post-it note stuck to the back of the phone.

_Teagan,_

_Dad was getting a little restless so I thought he could use a walk. We're headed to McGinty's. I'll stay will him until you get there._

_Emily_

A breath she didn't realize she had been holding escaped and she quickly changed into more comfortable clothes. This was going to be a good night, she could feel it in her bones, especially since she would get to spend it with all of her favorite people. Teagan locked the door to their apartment and nearly burst from excitement as she walked down the sidewalk towards McGinty's.

It had been her home away from home since she was old enough to remember. Niall and Doc had bought it together before her parents were even married. In fact, Doc would tell her stories about how when they were bachelors, instead of going home at night they would sleep in the spare room above the bar. She had her first kiss in the entrance and her first pint on the second stool to the left but they weren't all happy memories.

"…_and Ms. Frost says Monday is show and tell," a five year old Teagan bounced on the pads of her feet while Niall carried a few boxes into the bar._

_He set the boxes on the table and let a note for Doc. "And what's my niblet going to bring to show the class?"_

"_Hmmm," she tapped her finger against her chin in deep thought._

_Niall had to bite his bottom lip to keep his laughter in from the serious expression his daughter was wearing. "Don't think about it too hard, you're going to have smoke coming out your ears."_

_Teagan gasped and put her hands on either side of her head, "Is there a fire?!"_

_This time a boisterous laugh erupted from the young Irishman. "No, niblet, it's just a saying. Why don't we ask your ma what she thinks?"_

"_Can I bring her for show and tell?" Her little head tilted to the side in wonder._

"_I don't see why not," Niall shrugged as he reached a hand out for her to take. When her small fingers got lost in Da's large grasp, she smiled showing off her missing front tooth._

_They walked out of McGinty's together hand in hand, feeling on top of the world as they saw Siobhan across the street. Niall's eyes lit up at the sight of his wife. Siobhan was smiling, in a white and red polka dot dress, her auburn curls pulled back with a simple clip. Teagan waved enthusiastically at her mother, as Niall leaned down and whispered in her ear something about how she had the most beautiful mom in the whole world. _

_Siobhan took a step off the curb and time slowed down in that very second as a car came speeding around the corner blinded by the bright sun. He was racing, the tires squealed, rubber stuck to the pavement, a purse was dropped, its contents spilling out onto the street along with a small doll meant for Teagan. Siobhan laid there, a red as bright as her dress beginning to pool around her. Niall screamed as he rushed to his wife's side, leaving Teagan on the sidewalk alone and confused._

Someone ran into her on the sidewalk, and she stumbled a bit catching herself before she fell. She hadn't even realized she had made it to the bar and was staring out into the road.

"Shit, Tea, I didn't even see you there," Rocco apologized as he lit a cigarette. His untamed hair blew in the night breeze and his oversized coat almost swallowed his frame. If it had been anyone else, for any other reason, Teagan might have been afraid.

She took one last look at the street, the screams still echoing in her head, before linking arms with Rocco. "C'mon, Roc, buy a girl a drink."

"Anytime, sweet cheeks, anytime," he laughed, the running joke between the two since Teagan always drank for free anyways as he opened the door so she could walk in first.

Being off the sidewalk shifted her mood as she laid eyes on the men that kept her breathing. Murphy and Connor were hitting each other because of some comment that was made while Doc refilled their empty glasses. Niall was behind the bar cleaning glasses with a huge grin on his face. She looked at Rocco and put her finger to her lips as she snuck up behind the twins and pinched Murphy in the side resulting in a yelp. Connor laughed in amusement as he snaked an arm around her middle and Murphy rubbed his side with a scowl set firmly in place.

Teagan playfully stuck her tongue out at the darker twin and Connor whispered in her ear, "Hey, now, that's mine."

She leaned further back into him and craned her head to the side to capture his lips in greeting. He hungrily responded, easily getting lost in their own little world, as his arm locked her in place.

"Aw, shit," Rocco cursed as he reached over Murphy to snub out his cigarette in the ashtray. "Get a room."

Teagan giggled as Connor nibbled on the side of her neck, "Jealous, Roc?" He mumbled a few choice words under his breath that were unable to be heard. She stopped Connor's assault on her neck for a moment as she glanced around the bar. "Where's Emily?"

"It's Friday night lass, she had better things to do," Murphy responded and right as Teagan was about to protest he held up a finger to stop her. "He's been fine. We've got an eye on him."

It had been months since she had seen her father so happy and she couldn't help but stare. He chatted with a few of the patrons, hummed along with the song on the juke box, and was even joking around with Doc. Time had seemed to rewind for a brief moment and Teagan was eating up every minute of it. It was instances like this that she wished she could capture and save for a rainy day. Time was unforgiving though, and the moment passed as quick as it came.

"And what can I get a pretty little lass like you this evening?" Niall asked as he threw a dish towel over his shoulder.

She stood between Connor's legs as his fingers drew small designs in the inch of skin between the bottom of her shirt and the top of her pants. "I'll take a-"

"Let me guess," he put his hand up to stop her and moved around the back of the bar for a few minutes pouring a few different alcohols in a glass with some ice before he dropped a cherry on top.

Teagan was a whiskey girl through and through and wasn't really one for mixed drinks. She quirked an eyebrow at him as it was set on the bar in front of her. "What _is_ that?"

"Try it, ol' Niall wouldn't steer you wrong," he promised and urged her to take a sip.

She leaned over and sniffed the top of the drink trying to figure out what exactly was in the glass. It smelt sweet, with a hint of something she couldn't place, her eyes traveled to the rows of alcohol hoping something would trigger the answer but nothing came. With a shrug she picked the glass up and took a small taste. "That's actually delicious!"

He hit the bar in delight, "I knew you'd like it. It's my Siobhan's favorite."

Connor's hand stilled in its movements as she carefully set the glass back on the bar. She tried to melt into him because at that moment he was the only thing keeping her standing. He whispered a few reassuring words in her ear, with a few kisses planted on the side of her neck in between. Her eyes closed briefly as she concentrated on his words

"Well, I've got to try this," Murphy quickly took the attention off of the sullen mood and to give Teagan a chance to get a hold of her emotions. He swallowed what was left and slammed the glass down with cough.

Niall laughed with a shake of his head, "You're supposed to sip it lad."

"That was a sip for him," Rocco muttered, earning him a whack in the back of the head from the darker twin.

Murphy chanced a glance over to Teagan to see her attention already on him. She mouthed a silent thank you and he winked in response. She so easily fit that Murphy often had a hard time remembering what it was like before they had met. He had the upmost respect for her, especially since she wasn't immediately under his twin's spell. It took countless turned down invitations, a bouquet of lilies, and a lot of alcohol for Teagan to admit her true feelings.

Followed by the interrogation from a very protective Niall- with questions along the line of what his intentions were. There were warnings about all the ways Niall knew how to make a body disappear if he ever caught Teagan with a tear in her eye because of Connor. Finally, they sat at the bar trying to drink each other under the table. When Connor had kept pace with Niall, the older Irishman clapped his hand on the youth's shoulder and gave him the seal of approval.

Murphy discreetly motioned Doc over and ordered a double shot of whiskey for Teagan, as the smile slowly came back to her face from whatever Connor was whispering in her ear. She tried to stay in the present, to enjoy the time she had with all of her favorite men, but memories of her mother kept pulling her to the past. Her gaze shifted to a picture that hung behind the bar. Doc and Siobhan stood on either side of a three year old Teagan, who sat on the bar in pig tails with a stuffed bear tucked under her arm while Niall captured the moment with an old Polaroid.

"Great picture isn't it?" Niall asked, causing Teagan to blink a few times as she was brought back to the present.

She smiled, "Yeah it is."

"That little niblet is a beauty," he commented completely unaware of who he was talking to. For Niall, on this particular night, it was thirty years ago and he had just started dating Siobhan. So the young woman sitting in front of him was just another patron that had come in for a good time. It wasn't until he followed it up with a question that her heart shattered. "Do you know her?"

Teagan felt like she was going to be sick and went rigid in shock. She knew this day would come eventually, he'd be lost in some different time period where she didn't exist, but she hoped she still had years left before that happened.

"Da that's me," she whispered, as tears rimmed her eyes but she blinked them back refusing to let them fall.

Niall smiled goodheartedly, "I'm sorry lass I don't have any kids. You must've confused me with someone else."

"I'm…I'm sorry," she muttered an apology to her father so she wouldn't upset him as she walked to the back of the bar and out the rear exit.

Teagan took a few deep breaths trying to keep herself together but it was no use. She slid down the brick wall, pulling her knees up to her chest, and cried. Father time had lied, your time on earth was supposed to measured in years, but instead he had taken Niall from her too soon leaving behind a shell of the man she loved.

She wasn't out there long until Connor sat down next to her and pulled her onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around her shaking frame and held on promising to never let go.

"I hoped he wouldn't," Teagan sobbed into his shoulder. "I prayed that maybe I would be the one thing that could keep him here with me, now. He has no idea who I am, Conn. Everything is gone. Every laugh, and every tear, every Saturday sitting in the recliner reading comics, every kiss at night before bed, everything…my whole life and it's all gone."

Someone cleared their throat and the both of them looked up to see Murphy standing there. "He's asking for you."

Teagan nodded as she accepted his outstretched hand to pull her to her feet. Murphy gave her a hug and kissed her temple before she wiped away her tears and walked back into the bar with both brothers behind her. She was only a few feet in when she started to slow her pace, afraid of what was going to be said. Connor must have sensed her hesitation because he came up behind her and guided her back to their stool with a hand on her lower back.

"Are you alright, dear?" Doc asked, his eyes full of remorse for the girl he considered family. She shook her head in the negative and bit the side of her cheek to keep the tears in. "He's over there." Doc motioned to bench that lined one of the walls.

Teagan gave Connor's hand a squeeze, pulling any strength she could from him before she walked over to where her father was sitting with a pint. She sat down next to him and Niall turned so he could see her more clearly.

"I apologize lass if I said something to upset you."

"You just remind me of my Da is all," she replied, her voice full of emotion.

He patted her knee and offered a warm smile, "Well, that's not so bad, is it? Now let me tell you with those eyes of yours you could be my Siobhan's twin. What's your name, darlin'?"

"Teagan."

"Of course it is!" He exclaimed, taking a large pull from his mug. "You are the pure definition of beauty."

The two sat there for the rest of the night; Niall telling stories of how he met the love of his life and Teagan sharing stories of when she and Connor first got together. It wouldn't be a night Niall remembered- in fact in the next month he didn't even know who Siobhan was but it was a night Teagan wouldn't soon forget. To this day, she still swears that she felt her mothers hand on her shoulder while they swapped stories.

Time had robbed the Rafferty's for everything they had, leaving Teagan to grow up without a mother and to lose her father to his own mind. The seeds he had sown would live on deep within her that she would someday plant in her own children. There would never be enough time, but as the last grain of sand fell to the bottom of the hourglass, Niall was finally free.


End file.
